Adam Frank
Adam Frank was a contributor to the NPR blog 13.7: Cosmos & Culture. A professor at the University of Rochester, Frank is a theoretical/computational astrophysicist and currently heads a research group developing supercomputer code to study the formation and death of stars. Frank's research has also explored the evolution of newly born planets and the structure of clouds in the interstellar medium. Recently, he has begun work in the fields of astrobiology and network theory/data science. Frank also holds a joint appointment at the Laboratory for Laser Energetics, a Department of Energy fusion lab.
Frank is the author of two books: The Constant Fire, Beyond the Science vs. Religion Debate (University of California Press, 2010), which was one of SEED magazine's "Best Picks of The Year," and About Time, Cosmology and Culture at the Twilight of the Big Bang (Free Press, 2011). He has contributed to The New York Times and magazines such as Discover, Scientific American and Tricycle.
Frank's work has also appeared in The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2009. In 1999 he was awarded an American Astronomical Society prize for his science writing.
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Astrophysicist Adam Frank asks us to take a minute to enjoy this NASA video showing the other side of the moon — and to think about all the world that's out there right now, hidden from our eyes.
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Adam Frank says the Disneyland measles outbreak is a wake-up call; the assumption that if you disagree with certain established scientific results you can just ignore them will have consequences. -
There's a battle going on over the methods we can use to get answers for the biggest cosmic questions humans can ask. Astrophysicist Adam Frank explains why it's a contest over the future of science.
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The idea that we, as individuals, did not exist 1,000 years ago doesn't seem to worry us. So, why does the idea of not existing in the future freak us out so much? Adam Frank explores this notion. -
A few years ago, as part of his own thinking about human beings and their planet, astrophysicist Adam Frank began working on a project to think about any technological species on any planet. -
Invisible mathematical relations guide the sounds in this video — and everywhere, says astrophysicist Adam Frank. They're present in the waves your cellphone uses and are the heartbeat of the tides. -
The world lost a young genius because people were uncomfortable with whom he was inclined to love, says commentator Adam Frank. The future of computing may have been very different if he'd been alive. -
For a few hours on Christmas Eve, we let the charade and the walls drop and recognize each other for what we all are — fellow travelers on a journey no one understands, says commentator Adam Frank. -
If you were asked to picture the universe, you might conjure up images of stars and swirling galaxies. Commentator Adam Frank says one new book succeeds in showing you what past generations imagined.
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From ghosts to gods, human beings have invested enormous effort trying to understand the invisible. The unseen world is, pretty much, the entire world, says commentator Adam Frank.
